PUTTAPARTHI: The 84th birthday celebrations of Sri Satya Sai Baba were held at Sai Kulwant Hall in Prashanti Nilayam in Puttaparthi. Saibaba has formally cut the cake to mark his birthday in the presence of several dignitaries and thousands of devotees who thronged to witness the celebrations.

This time around, Sathya Sai Baba did not speak nor give any message.

The entire celebrations were a low-key affair. Malgudi brothers entertained the audience with their bhajans.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan attended the function with his family members.

There were less number of foreign devotees this year for the birthday celebrations may be due to economic recession and the recent floods. NT Chowdary and Dr Damoder arranged for free food for the devotees.

An enchanting evening of ragas and talas
TNN 24 November 2009, 05:13am IST

BANGALORE: The Goddesses of Carnatic music and dance left audience hooked to their seats at Ambedkar Bhavan. The musical evening, part of the ‘Bangalore Festival’ had the audience swaying to ragas and talas.

It was Sudha who set the pace for the evening. She began with preludes in Sanskrit, seeking the blessings of lord Ganesha and Krishna. The ragas she sang left listeners lost in a melodious world.

When she picked the high note, the packed audience echoed with applause. She also rendered a bhajan to Sathya Sai Baba, as it was his birthday on Monday.

After one hour of pure bliss, Padma Shri Shobhana took centrestage. She began with a varnam and she also danced to a bhajan from one of her Hindi movies. Her troupe, which performed a ballet, regaled the rasikas as well. A music lover and dancer herself, Vani Ganapathy kept on clapping and encouraging both her contemporaries. She expressed delight in attending the cultural festival. At the end of the programme, music and dance lovers went home craving for more.